


Downfall

by banditBlue2



Series: Bridge Across the Void [4]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Barry Allen is a BDSM hot potato, Bondage, Collars, F/M, Oral Sex, Redemption, the things we do for love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-01 22:16:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 10,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17252378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/banditBlue2/pseuds/banditBlue2
Summary: On Earth-2, Zoom has taken over Central City. Harry Wells has sacrificed so many people to keep Jesse alive. He doesn’t know if he can ever find redemption. Ronnie Raymond doesn’t know if Killer Frost is still alive, but he will do anything to get her back.How far will we go to protect those we love?





	1. Phantom Pain

**Author's Note:**

> Previously on ‘Bridge Across the Void’:  
>   
> On Earth-2, Dr. Harrison Wells’ daughter Jesse was kidnapped by the supervillain speedster Zoom. Harrison was forced to build a Human Shield, which encased the entire city in a forcefield which would kill any non-metahuman who tried to go through it. He was also forced to rig the Particle Accelerator to explode if Zoom ran through the Accelerator at a fast enough speed. 
> 
> Zoom took over Central City and ruled it with an iron fist. After most of the cops were killed, Zoom made a deal with Iris West-Allen to let her be police chief in exchange for only enforcing crimes done by non-metahumans. But she had to hand her husband Barry West-Allen (a metahuman who has super-healing but no super-speed) over to Killer Frost to seal the deal. 
> 
> Harrison was guarded constantly by Zoom’s minions Killer Frost (Caitlin Snow) and Deathstorm (Ronnie Raymond). He got help building the Human Shield from Death Ray (Ray Palmer) who builds miniature bombs, and Panoptica (Felicity Smoak) who has laser vision and runs the Pipeline, Zoom’s personal prison. 
> 
> When Jesse found out about the people Harrison has helped kill in order to protect her, she was horrified. Harrison smuggled her out of the city by giving her a special necklace which allowed her to pass through the Human Shield. But before she left, she made her father promise to protect the city. 
> 
> Zoom was furious that Killer Frost and Deathstorm had let Jesse Wells escape, and he punished them violently.

“I love you,” Ronnie said to Caitlin, as she lay unmoving in the tunnel.

Zoom’s vibrating hand cut into his shoulder, and Ronnie screeched in agony. He wanted to die with dignity, but the pain was too much. He couldn’t stop screaming.

Then suddenly, Zoom wasn’t standing over him anymore. Ronnie looked down in horror to see his left arm was gone. He pressed at the open wound desperately, but his blood was spurting out into the grimy drainage water. He was rapidly losing blood volume, and he wouldn’t last long.

He realized what he had to do to survive.

He stopped screaming long enough to take a deep breath. He looked over at Frost, reminding himself why he wanted to live. Then he flamed up his remaining hand and cauterized the wound.

He screamed even louder this time. Then everything went dark.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie opened his eyes, but everything was out of focus. Fuzzy figures drifted by him. He tried to speak to them, but his mouth was too dry. Part of his chest was numb.

Panoptica came into focus in the center of his vision, then she reached over to adjust something by his arm, and he fell asleep again.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

The next time he woke up, his head was clearer. He reached over with his right hand and gingerly felt his left shoulder. It was swathed in bandages, and a dull ache throbbed deep in his tissues.

But he was alive.

Ronnie sat up, but something heavy was pulling on his injured left shoulder. He looked down in confusion to see a metal cylinder hanging down his side.

“You’re awake,” said Death Ray dryly, as he came into the lab with his eyes on his tablet.

Death Ray got a small flashlight out and checked Ronnie’s pupils. Then he pulled the bandages away from Ronnie’s shoulder and looked at the swelling.

Ronnie looked down in shock to see the metal cylinder was bonded to his scarred flesh. His arm was gone, and a metal monstrosity was in its place. He used his remaining hand to hold the new metal arm up and study it. He felt like the Winter Soldier. Or Frankenstein’s monster.

“It’s a thing of beauty, isn’t it?” said Death Ray with a smirk. “It’s connected to your muscle nerves, so you’ll be able to control it soon, once you play around with it.”

Ronnie used his real arm to pull all the metal fingers down, except for the middle finger. “Will I be able to do this?” he asked Death Ray, giving him the bird.

Death Ray just rolled his eyes. “Let Panoptica rebandage your shoulder and give you some pain pills, then we’ll call a taxi to take you home.”

“Home?” Ronnie asked.

“The Wells mansion,” Death Ray explained. “Unless you want to stick around here.”

Just then, Panoptica stumbled in, wearing only a thong and stripper heels. 

“I’ll take a taxi,” Ronnie said quickly.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie stumbled in to the dark Wells mansion. His balance was thrown off by the new metal arm. He felt lost and broken. Like a piece of him was gone forever.

Was Frost even still alive?

Suddenly, Ronnie heard footsteps approaching, and he instinctively used his metal arm to slam the person against the nearest wall. He was surprised at how strong the arm was. Deathstorm ignited his remaining hand to see who it was.

Barry West-Allen stared back at him with wide fearful eyes.


	2. The Rebound

Ronnie and Barry stared at each other in shock, both surprised to see the other. Then Barry visibly relaxed, relieved to see a familiar face.

Ronnie let him go and switched on some lights. It was too dark in here. Too empty. 

It was so lonely without Frost.

He didn’t know when she’d be back. _If_ she’d be back. Maybe she was dead. Maybe Zoom killed her. Except she _had_ to be alive. She had to. Otherwise … 

Ronnie felt so tired. He slumped down on the leather couch. He propped his scuffed boots up on the mirrored coffee table and flicked on the tv. He found an ice hockey game and settled in. 

“Allen, bring me a beer,” he called.

Allen quickly returned with a beer from the freezer, where all of Ronnie’s drinks were kept. The beer was frozen solid, but it would be steaming by the time Ronnie got to the dregs. 

Allen stood nearby with his hands behind his back. Usually, Frost gave the orders, and she had trained him not to leave until she dismissed him. Ronnie decided to have a bit of fun and completely ignore him, to see how long he would stand there obediently. 

He quickly downed the beer and threw it at Barry who had been paying enough attention to catch it. Ronnie watched Barry scurry into the kitchen, and he heard the clink as Allen put the bottle in the appropriate recycling bin. It was nice to have a houseboy who cooked, cleaned and sorted the recycling. 

Allen crept back into the living room, still waiting for Ronnie to dismiss him. Ronnie ignored him, then the game went into half-time. The score wasn't close, and Ronnie didn't even care about these teams too much. He put the tv on mute.

Ronnie knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight in the big empty bed without Frost. He also knew he couldn’t fall asleep without something to relax him.

He looked over at Allen. The boy was standing at attention, hands behind his back and eyes downcast demurely. 

“Allen, come here,” he said. The boy immediately came to stand beside him. Ronnie used his foot to give the coffee table a violent shove away from him. It screeched across the floor. “In front,” he said, pointing to the now open floor. 

Allen knelt before him without question. Ronnie undid his fly and reached into his pants. He pulled out his growing member and began to stroke it with his right hand. He used to use his left hand, before it was cut off. It felt weird and awkward to use a different hand, and he doubted he could finish. “You ever gone down on a guy before?” he asked. 

The boy shook his head with wide eyes. 

“Don't worry, I’ll help you learn.” He reached out and pulled Allen’s head down to his crotch. Without hesitation, Allen engulfed his dick into the warm softness of his mouth. 

“No teeth,” Ronnie hissed angrily. The boy flinched at the critique but quickly tucked his teeth behind his lips. He could feel him waggling his tongue back and forth, like he had seen him do with Frost. “I'm not a girl, move your tongue like you're licking an ice cream cone. Swirl it.”

Allen quickly adapted his technique, and Ronnie groaned as the boy swirled his tongue over his head. He stroked him gently on the cheek since he was doing so good. Allen flinched at the light touch, before relaxing into it when he realized it was affection and not punishment. “You're doing good, keep going.” Allen moaned in pleasure at the compliment.

Ronnie jerked his hips at the vibration of the moan, and Allen noticed. He began to moan continuously, and Ronnie liked it.

He only had to make a few more corrections before he started to reach his climax. God this felt good. Frost had gone down on him a few times, but they preferred sex that got them both off. Oral can be very one-sided.

He was reaching his climax, and Allen began to hollow out his cheeks as he increased the suction. “I'm about to cum. Try to swallow if you can,” he managed to grunt. He came in his mouth, and Allen obediently tried to swallow as much as possible. It was obvious he wasn't used to swallowing a load of cum, but he did his best to choke it down. Damn it was sexy. To see the boy so desperate to please.

Ronnie felt so relaxed. He tucked himself away and zipped up his pants. The game was still on, but on mute. He leaned back on the couch and felt his eyelids grow heavy. Allen was still kneeling in front of him, awaiting further orders. He should probably tell the boy he could go. Wash his mouth out or something. But Allen seemed totally fine. He looked satisfied and calm, like he enjoyed pleasing Ronnie. 

“Good job,” Ronnie found himself saying. He reached out and stroked the boy’s hair affectionately. Allen leaned into the caress and closed his eyes. His shiny red lips quirked into a contented smile. 

“Come up on the couch with me.” Ronnie patted the couch next to him with his right hand. Allen tentatively climbed up and perched next to him. Ronnie put his hand on the boy’s shoulder and pulled him down to lay his head in his lap.

Allen let Ronnie position him as he pleased. Then he pulled his legs up on the couch and relaxed into a fetal position. Ronnie kept his arm wrapped around Barry’s shoulder.

Then they both fell asleep.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

The ice sculpture stood alone in the middle of the park. Gentle snowflakes floated in the air, in no hurry to reach the ground.

Ronnie stepped closer. The sculpture looked so familiar. He squinted into the statue’s eyes and saw Caitlin staring back at him. She was trapped inside!

He flamed up, desperate to thaw her out. But his heat just melted her ice into water. He grabbed at her body, trying to keep her intact, but his hot hands only melted her faster.

“Caitlin!” he yelled desperately, but she was gone. Just a puddle of water, which was slowly freezing into ice again. He thrust his flaming hands into the water, but only his reflection stared back at him.

He felt a hand grip his arm, and he opened his eyes to see Barry sitting beside him. Ronnie smelled something burning, and he realized he was burning Barry’s back with his flames.

Ronnie pushed Barry away and doused his flames. Barry stared up at him from the floor.

“Are you okay?” Ronnie asked him. He knelt and checked Barry’s back, where the flames had burnt his shirt black. “Oh God, Barry, I’m sorry.”

He pulled Barry into the kitchen and sat him up on the counter. Silent tears of pain coursed down Barry’s pale cheeks but not a single sound escaped his pursed lips. Ronnie grabbed a six-pack of frozen beer from the freezer and pressed it against Barry’s back. Then he pulled out a first-aid kit to doctor him up.

But when Ronnie pulled Barry’s shirt away from the wound, Barry was already healing. Ronnie kept forgetting he was a metahuman with super-healing.

“Are you in pain?” Ronnie asked.

“It’s fading,” Barry answered. But he looked like he wanted to say more.

“What’s wrong?” Ronnie demanded. “Spit it out.”

“Is Frost okay?” Barry asked.

“I don’t know,” Ronnie answered.

Barry put his hand comfortingly on Ronnie’s shoulder. Ronnie put his hand on top of Barry's. It touched Ronnie that Barry could express sympathy to the people who had imprisoned and sexually abused him for weeks.

Then Barry asked, “What about Iris?”

Honestly, Ronnie had forgotten about her. “I think she’s fine,” he replied.

Barry was obviously still worried.

“How about you call her?” Ronnie glanced at the clock. “I know it’s late, but I don’t think she’ll mind.”

Barry stared at him, like he was afraid this was a trick, and Ronnie would take back what he said and mock him for believing it. Ronnie nodded his head towards the telephone on the wall, and Barry went over to it and called using the rotary dial.

Iris picked up after a few rings, and Barry said her name, but then he got so choked up he couldn’t talk.

Ronnie could hear Iris’s increasingly more desperate questions. So he went over and took over the call. “Don’t worry, he’s fine.”

“Who is this?” Iris asked sharply.

“Deathstorm,” he replied nonchalantly. “Barry’s fine. He’s just a little choked up, so he’s having trouble speaking.”

“If you hurt my husband, I will kill you,” threatened Iris.

Ronnie rolled his eyes. “Look, I’m being nice and letting him call you. I wanted him to know you were okay.”

Iris said, “Barry, I’m fine, don’t worry about me. Are you okay?”

They could both hear her, but Barry still paused. 

Iris was concerned. “Barry, are you okay? I need to hear you say it,”

“I’m fine,” Barry finally managed to croak out. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“I want to see him,” demanded Iris, obviously talking to Deathstorm.

“I’ll think about it,” Ronnie said. Tears were starting to stream down Barry’s face, and it was obvious to Ronnie that the boy wouldn’t be able to talk anymore.

Ronnie hung up the phone, and Barry immediately buried his face in the other man’s chest.


	3. The Jitterbug Club

Iris West-Allen, chief of the Central City Police Department, wore a black dress with subtle sequins. She sat by herself in the Jitterbug nightclub and listened to her father sing live jazz.

Iris knew it was important to show the citizens of Central City that they shouldn’t live in fear. That they shouldn’t let Zoom and his metahuman minions control their lives. Which was why she visited the Jitterbug a few nights a week. 

Francine West came over and sat next to her daughter.

“The club looks nice,” Iris told her. “I can barely tell the front windows have been replaced.”

“Since the damage was caused by metahumans, the META fund helped pay for the repairs,” Francine replied. “What do you think of the jazz singer? I might have to fire him.”

“Shut up!” Iris gave her mom a light shove.

Joe West grinned at them from the stage.

“I think he likes you,” Iris teased her mother.

“I think he does,” Francine said with a smirk.

They were all a lot more relaxed now that they had confirmation Barry was still alive. But like all moments of peace in Central City, the calm was soon shattered. 

Deathstorm burst through the club’s front window. 

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

The jazz band immediately stopped playing, and the patrons immediately stopped talking.

Deathstorm grinned as the myriad citizens of Central City timidly evacuated the club. The scurried around like mice, afraid he would bite them. He rubbed at his shoulder, right where the metal met flesh.

Soon, the only patron left in the club was Police Chief Iris West-Allen, who sat stoically on her couch and stared Deathstorm down.

But then her eyes flickered off to his side as she saw who was entering behind him. Barry West-Allen peeked out around Deathstorm’s broad frame and smiled at his wife.

Iris lost her steely bravado at the sight of her husband, and her eyes got shiny. Ronnie pulled Barry out in front of him and kept a hand on the skinny young man’s shoulder. He went and stood in front of Iris. “You said you wanted to see him. I’m not giving him back, but you can talk with him while I’m here.”

Ronnie shoved Barry forward, and he immediately curled up beside his wife on the overstuffed leather sofa. Ronnie sprawled out on the next couch. 

Iris kept her eyes on Deathstorm. “Why are you still keeping him? It’s been over a month. You don’t need him as a hostage. I won’t abandon this city.”

“Frost likes him,” Ronnie replied with a shrug. 

“Where _is_ Killer Frost?” Iris asked.

“I thought this was supposed to be a jazz club,” Ronnie yelled up at the timid black man on the stage. The music started up again, and Iris was smart enough to let the question go. 

An older black woman was standing behind the bar, and she whispered something to a blond hostess. The hostess sauntered over in a flapper’s dress and deposited a bottle of nice whiskey and some crystal tumblers on the table in front of Ronnie. “On the house,” she told him and poured a glass.

Instead of going back to the bar, she knelt on the couch beside him to hand him the small glass. “I’m on the house, too,” she said.

Ronnie didn’t send her away. The distraction might be nice.

The blond pulled a silver tube out of her bra and opened it to reveal a tube of dark blue lipstick. “Do you mind if I freshen up?” she asked sensuously. He suddenly glared across the room at the club owner, knowing exactly what she was trying to do.

He shoved the blond off the couch without taking his eyes off the owner. The girl shrieked as she fell on the floor. The club owner strode over immediately, and the music stopped again.

“I’m sorry, Francine, I was …” the blond stammered as she moved to hide behind her boss, but Francine gestured for her to leave. At the next couch, Iris was sitting up and had her hand near her purse, but Barry was gripping her wrist and desperately holding her back. 

Francine stared at Ronnie calmly. “I’m sorry for what just happened. I thought you might be in the mood for something … familiar.”

Ronnie glared at her wearily. “The last thing I want right now is _familiar_.” He spat the last word out like it tasted bad in his mouth.

“What _are_ you in the mood for?” Francine asked without missing a beat.

Ronnie took a sip of whiskey. “Anything but blondes,” he replied.

Francine nodded and turned to go arrange that for him.

“And cigars would be nice,” Ronnie called after her. Francine nodded without looking back and gestured for the band to continue.

By the time Ronnie had polished off his first glass of whiskey, two girls were heading his way with their arms linked and their swaggers in step. Ronnie admired the strategy. Safety in numbers when servicing the dangerous metahuman.

One was a curvy Latina, and the other was a skinny redhead. Both wore pale pink lipstick, freshly applied. It didn’t quite go with their colorings, but it was probably the farthest thing from dark blue they could find on short notice. They curled up on his couch, one on either side of him. The redhead put on a fedora a customer had left behind in his haste to avoid Deathstorm. Iris and Barry did their best to not look at them.

The Latina pulled out two cigars and pushed one sensuously into her mouth. He let her put the other one between his own lips. “Got a light?” she asked around the cigar clenched between her teeth. He formed a small fireball in the palm of his hand, and she leaned over to dip the tip of her cigar into the flames. She hollowed her cheeks and sucked until the tip glowed. She pressed her lit end to his, and he took a long drag until his cigar was lit, too. Frost never liked the smell of cigars, so he only partook on occasion.

Over the course of the night, Ronnie got some delightful lap dances, but he had no desire to go any farther than that. Besides, the whiskey made him too drunk to get it up. 

Iris and Barry talked quietly, but Ronnie couldn’t hear them over the music. He actually liked the music. The jazz singer was good. At one point, the band took a break, and the singer came over and stood behind the West-Allen couch and put his hand on Barry’s shoulder. Ronnie observed the odd interaction but didn’t care enough to ask.

Ronnie relaxed under the effects of the booze and the jazz and the girls. He closed his eyes just for a moment … 

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie jerked awake. It was late, but no one had the balls to tell him it was time to go. At some point, the band had left, but he hadn’t noticed, and the whiskey bottle was down to the dregs. He stood up abruptly, and the girls slid off him to either side.

Iris gripped her husband possessively, but Barry placed a single hand on her knee, and she let him go. Ronnie didn’t have to lay a hand on him. He just tilted his head to indicate that the boy should follow him, and he left, trusting Barry to follow. He stumbled a bit on his way to the door, and suddenly, Barry was at his side, keeping him from falling.

“Maybe you shouldn’t drink and fly,” the boy suggested quietly.

Ronnie nodded, and thankfully, there were always a line of taxis along this street, waiting to pick up late night drinkers and ferry them home. Barry guided him into a taxi and made to slide in next to him.

But Ronnie put his hand on Barry’s chest and wouldn’t let him in. Barry looked confused. 

“No,” Ronnie told him. “You belong with your wife. I’m sorry I kept you two apart for so long. Go home, Barry.”

Ronnie dropped his arm, and Barry took the opportunity to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Leave,” Ronnie told him. “Before I change my mind.”

Barry walked back into the Jitterbug, where Iris was sitting on the couch with her parents on either side of her. Comforting their little girl. 

Iris was always so strong. It shocked Barry to see her look so broken. 

She finally noticed he was back and ran to embrace him. Barry stood with her in his arms. He hugged her tightly, and she hugged him even tighter. They would never let go again. 

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie rolled himself out of the backseat of the taxi without paying. Everything was on the house for metahumans in this city.

He walked up to the front door of the Wells’ mansion and promptly tripped over something on the welcome mat. He drunkenly lit a fireball in his palm and looked down to see Dr. Harrison Wells, handcuffed to the doorknob.

“Zoom says if you let me escape again, he’ll cut off your head,” Harry told him.


	4. The Pain of Hope

Harrison sat strapped to a metal chair. They were deep underground. Probably under the Particle Accelerator, as far as he could tell. He saw a prison cell against one wall, with a single rusty cuff dangling from a central pillar. Evidently, this was where Jesse had been imprisoned.

He found quiet comfort in the knowledge that he had smuggled Jesse out of the city and through the Human Shield, which prevented all non-metahumans from entering or leaving. Team Zoom still believed his daughter had to be inside the city. 

Killer Frost taunted him, “Well, good thing Jesse got a good shower and a change of clothes before you dumped her down a sewer pipe.”

Harrison said nothing.

Frost continued, undeterred. “How do you know she didn’t drown? Or get hypothermia? Or die from an infection from the polluted water? It’s not like she could just go to a hospital if she got hurt.”

Harrison said quietly, “I know she’s not dead. Because she’s the smartest person I know. If something goes wrong, she’ll figure out a solution.”

Frost just smirked. “But how do you _know_? She could dead right now, and you wouldn’t know.”

Her voice quavered at the end, as a shiver ran through her body.

“I thought you _liked_ the cold,” Harrison pointed out, changing the subject.

“I’m running out of warmth in here. I absorb heat from my surroundings,” Frost retorted. “That’s why I like to fuck Ro…”

She stopped abruptly.

“I’m sorry, like to fuck who?” Harrison taunted. “Also, shouldn’t it be ‘liked’, not ‘like’? I mean, is he even still alive?”

Frost went silent. Then there was a screeching sound as she threw razor sharp icicles directly at Harrison’s defenseless bound body. But they all crashed harmlessly against the carbyne cube she was trapped in.

“Shut up,” Frost spat. “Or else I’ll kill you slowly.”

Harrison shut up. Not because of the threat, but because Frost looked truly broken by his reminder that Ronnie might be dead. It didn’t help that her carbyne cage didn’t let any heat in, so she was slowly wasting away as her body was deprived of life-giving warmth.

Suddenly, Harrison looked up and Zoom was hovering right over him. The monster never stood still. He only vibrated in place. Purple sparks zipped across his suit and jumped off his skin.

Harrison stared up at him as defiantly as he could.

“ **Time to go home, Dr. Wells** ,” Zoom said.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Zoom had left the cuff keys on the front porch, just out of Harrison’s reach. Ronnie uncuffed him from the door knob and took him into the kitchen to look him over. 

Harrison had a new metal tracking collar around his neck. Team Zoom had learned their lesson after Harrison had removed Jesse’s wrist tracker by dislocating her thumb.

“So, Harry,” Ronnie asked with false friendliness. “Where ya been?”

Harrison shrugged. “Zoom’s lair.” Harrison filled up a glass of water without asking permission. He felt jauntier now. Zoom had released him without mentioning Jesse, which means they hadn’t found her yet. 

With Jesse in the wind, Harrison felt untouchable.

“What about you?” Harrison asked as he glugged the water. He looked over the rim of the glass at Ronnie’s new metal arm.

“Let’s get something straight here, Harry.” Ronnie used his metal arm to grip fiercely at Harrison’s shoulder. “The rules are going to be a bit more strict now. You lied to me, you tricked me, you are the reason I’m missing an arm, and you are the reason I haven’t seen the love of my life in weeks.”

Harrison just stared at him.

Ronnie snarled, “You put one toe out of line, and I don't care if Zoom needs you, I will kill you slowly.”

“Frost said the same thing,” Harrison replied with a smirk. His shoulder ached under Ronnie’s metal grip, but nothing he couldn’t handle.

Ronnie gripped Harrison’s shoulder even harder. “Wait, when…when did she say that?”

Harrison was confused. “A few hours ago.”

“So she’s alive?” Ronnie suddenly looked like a scared little kid. 

Harrison nodded. “Yeah. I saw her just before Zoom took me here. Wait, Zoom didn’t tell you she’s alive?”

He felt a tiny blip of sympathy for his captor. It was hell for him to not know if Jesse was alive. And now Ronnie was going through the same thing.

Ronnie darted his eyes back and forth between Harrison’s eyes, searching for any sign of deception. Finally, he pressed his face into Harrison’s chest and wept without restraint. Frost was alive.

Harrison just stood there, not knowing what to do. He awkwardly patted Ronnie’s back.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Once his tears had dried, Ronnie took Harrison back to the master bedroom. He cuffed his hands behind his back and chained his metal collar to the foot of the bed.

Harrison had to sleep on the bare carpet, while Ronnie had the king-sized bed all to himself.

“Where’s Allen?” Harrison asked.

Ronnie just said, “Home.” Harrison dropped the subject.

Harrison looked over at the wall and thought of Jesse, and Ronnie looked up at the ceiling and thought of Frost.


	5. Fearful Symmetry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from ‘The Tyger’ by William Blake.

Harrison looked over the railing down into the STAR Labs lobby. Panoptica was facing off against three terrified citizens. They looked hopeless and full of despair. One of them looked up at Harrison, but she didn’t even call out for his help.

She knew they didn’t have a chance.

Harrison wondered if they were political prisoners who had broken Zoom’s laws, or just random citizens. He felt a tug on his metal collar.

“Come on, Harry.” Ronnie pulled on the chain linked to Harrison’s collar. “We don’t have all day.”

Harrison reluctantly trudged on. Behind him, he heard a shriek as Panoptica burned someone alive with her heat vision. 

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie took them to the roof of the Labs, where the Shield generator sat like a grumbling monstrosity of metal and wires. The fading sun was setting behind the city skyline.

The sky had a subtle shimmer where the Shield hovered over the entire city like a deadly bubble. It gave everything a slightly blue tint. Tiny blips darted across the Shield’s surface and distorted the sunset. 

Death Ray was already there, supervising Black Siren as she ran a diagnostic on one of the computer terminals. She glared at Ronnie and Harrison as they approached.

“Good, you’re here,” Death Ray greeted them. “Take a look.” He grabbed the back of a collar Siren was wearing and pulled her away from the terminal.

Harrison noticed that there were tiny bombs clipped to the collar. Death Ray was taking no chances with her.

Harrison peered down at the screen. He studied the various readouts. Lots of little anomalies. He knew Jesse’s necklace would cause anomalies like these, but they should have dissipated by now. She had escaped weeks ago.

Whatever the cause, the solution was pretty simple. He had written the code in an obscure programming language he had invented back in high school, with lots of random loops and terminology that only he fully understood. There was no way Zoom could find anyone else to patch the program, so he knew he would remain useful.

After a few final taps, he hit Enter with a flourish of his hand. “Fixed,” he announced.

Above them, the blips in the Shield disappeared, and the bubble was smooth again. Ronnie and Death Ray were looking over Harrison’s shoulder, admiring his work.

“Good job, Harry,” Death Ray said cheerfully. He clapped the collared man on the shoulder.

Harrison couldn’t help but smirk at the compliment. It felt good to fix a science problem and have someone appreciate his genius.

Then he felt a sharp pain on his temple.

Ronnie pulled him behind him protectively. Harrison was a little dazed. He rubbed his painful forehead, and his hand came away bloody. He looked over and saw Death Ray wrestling a metal wrench out of Black Siren’s grasp.

She hit me, Harrison realized.

Death Ray dragged Black Siren away by grabbing her by the back of her bomb collar, but she still fought back like a she-devil.

She yelled back at them, “Harrison Wells, you killed my sister. Ronnie Raymond, you killed my father! I used to have a family, and now I have no one!”

Harrison just stared after her in a daze.

Death Ray was almost through the roof access door, but Black Siren was still screaming, “I will have my vengeance! Upon you both!”

The roof access door slammed shut as Death Ray dragged her through. The last bit of sun sank beneath the horizon, and the city was in darkness once again.


	6. The Sum of Ourselves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lady Mercury is Tina McGee, and she’s a dominatrix. She was in [Chapter 4](https://archiveofourown.org/works/11175603/chapters/25459026) of ‘Kingdom of Isolation.’
> 
> Chapter title is from 'The Way We Get By' by Spoon.

Harrison held onto Ronnie as they zipped through the dark city on the motorcycle. Harrison was barely aware of where they were. His thoughts were too loud.

He could still hear Black Siren’s words in his mind. Her threats didn’t scare him. He had a million other things that were more likely to kill him. But she made him feel guilty.

It was his fault that her sister was dead. He had built the Human Shield for Zoom, and Sara Lance had burned alive as she ran through it. He could still see her bones scatter across the pavement.

Harrison could tell that Ronnie was brooding, too. Black Siren’s pain was hard to forget. Ronnie had killed her dad to protect Harrison, but it was still a haunting death.

There were so many ghosts in Central City.

Ronnie screeched to a halt and jumped off his Fire Bike. Harrison followed close behind him, since his leash wasn’t too long. Ronnie went into a nearby building. The Jitterbug Club.

A jazz band was playing on the stage, and various club patrons stared at Deathstorm in terror as he walked past, but he ignored them. He was just Ronnie right now. They got to the back of the club, and an elegant black woman ushered them through a beaded curtain and down a staircase into the basement. She gave a special knock at a door, and it was opened to let them in.

In the center of the basement room was a table, and around it sat four people. Iris West-Allen, the Central City Police Chief. Her deputy, Floyd Lawton. Her husband, Barry West-Allen. (Harrison was glad to see him alive and well.)

But the fourth person at the table was a very pleasant surprise. “Hello, Harrison,” said Lady Mercury, with a sexy growl to her voice.

Harrison just smiled back at her. He couldn’t think of anything witty to say.

“You came,” said Barry happily. “I told Iris you would.” He gestured for Ronnie to sit next to him.

Harrison grabbed the seat next to Tina. She had an intricate web of shiny metal which covered her body like armor. It moved with her, like the metal was liquid.

“Let’s get started,” said Iris. “Dr. Wells, I don’t know how much Ronnie Raymond has told you, but I’ve agreed to grant him and Caitlin Snow full immunity for all past crimes, in return for his cooperation in defeating Zoom.”

Harrison was shocked. He hadn’t expected Ronnie to cut a deal. Not while Frost was still missing.

Iris continued, “We’ll go over the full plan with both of you, but for the most important part of the plan, we need you to do something, Dr. Wells.”

“Do what?” Harrison asked.

“Give permission,” Iris answered.

Harrison was confused. But then the door opened, and Jesse Wells came into the room. Her blue necklace still glowed around her neck. He stood to embrace her with tears in his eyes, but then his joy turned to anger.

“Why are you in the city?” He asked forcefully. “It’s too dangerous here.”

“I couldn’t abandon this city,” Jesse explained.

“We need her to get close to Zoom,” Iris explained. “But we’re not willing to involve her in the plan without parental permission. She’s a minor, and we need to respect that, even in a time like this.”

“Hell, no,” Harrison said without bothering to think. “I almost lost her. I’m not willing to risk her again.”

Jesse grabbed his arm. “Dad, if you let me do this, there’s a chance you’ll lose me. But if you forbid me from doing this, there’s a _certainty_ that you’ll lose me. Because I’ll _never_ speak to you again.”

A grim determination shone in Jesse’s shiny eyes as she stared up at her father with a jutting chin. Harrison knew that look. When Jesse set her mind to doing something, she wouldn’t let it go. Ten-year-old determination.

Jesse said quietly, “Prove to me you’re better than what you’ve done.”

Harrison sank down into his chair again. He knew he had lost. “Okay, she can participate in our doomed plan.”

“Don’t think that way, Dr. Wells,” Barry urged him. “We need to have hope.”

“Iris has a plan,” Floyd Lawton assured him.

Harrison resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “What else do you need from me?” he asked instead.

Iris nodded at Lady Mercury, who put a small suitcase on the table in front of Harrison. He opened it to find his Pulse Rifle. The original weapon he was going to use to defeat Zoom. It still had the white markings on it from the STAR Labs research lab. The speed-dampening darts were ready to load, but Lady Mercury had evidently added a few improvements.

Maybe they did have a chance.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie had been as shocked as Harrison to see Jesse. He knew how much Zoom wanted to capture her again. She was the key to having complete control over Harrison.

Zoom would do _anything_ to get her back.

Ronnie was envious when he saw Harrison reunite with Jesse. Even Iris and Barry were back together, thanks to him. But he and Frost were still apart.

Trusting this team was a major risk. If they defeated Zoom, they could probably rescue Frost and get her out alive, Probably. But if they failed, Zoom would kill Frost for sure. Images of what her dead body would look like kept flooding into his mind.

Ronnie had flip-flopped back and forth on what to do. There was only one thing he knew for certain: He loved Killer Frost more than life itself.

He would do _anything_ to get her back.


	7. Betrayal

Ronnie solidified the image of Killer Frost in his mind. The love of his life. The dame of his dreams. The only thing that satisfied his burning lust. The only person that made his life worth living. He had to be Deathstorm today. He had to fight for her. He had to save her.

No matter the cost.

Deathstorm dragged Jesse Wells along behind him. She was weeping and pleading, but he didn’t listen to her. They entered the STAR Labs lobby. Way above them, the Bridge Boardroom hovered over the cavernous room. The upper floors of the building were all open to the lobby below, and various metahuman minions in Zoom’s army looked over the railings down at them. Deathstorm ignored them.

Panoptica and Death Ray were making out at the reception desk, but they stopped to look up the new arrivals.

“Look what the cat dragged in,” Panoptica crooned.

Ray wiped his mouth, but a lot of Panoptica’s lipstick was still smeared on his face. “Nice job, Deathstorm. Where’d you find the little runaway?”

Deathstorm ignored the question and tossed Jesse’s necklace to Ray. “This is how she got through the Human Shield,” he explained.

Ray examined the necklace. He loved finding new tech.

“Hand her over,” Panoptica told Deathstorm. “I’ve got a nice, comfy little prison cell waiting just for her.”

Deathstorm pulled Jesse behind him. His metal hand was clenched around her arm, and she whimpered at his grip.

“First, I want Frost back,” Deathstorm told them. “This isn’t a gift, this is a _trade_. A life for a life.”

Panoptica’s eyes flashed in anger behind her spectacles. “You idiot! You realize Zoom is a Speedster, right? He can just take the girl, no matter what kind of _’trade’_ you propose.”

Deathstorm pulled a bottle of lighter fluid out of his jacket and began to squirt it on Jesse’s head. The fluid soaked into her red hair and trickled down her body. Jesse whimpered in fear. A single spark would light her whole body on fire, and she was being held captive by a metahuman with fire powers.

Deathstorm finished pouring the whole bottle on her. The smell of the flammable liquid drifted around the lobby. Above them, the metahuman minions watched in quiet anticipation. 

“If Zoom tries to speed in and grab her, his sparks will light her up,” Deathstorm explained. “And if he doesn’t give me Frost, _I’ll_ light her up.”

He concentrated, and flames burst to life around his feet and his hand. Even his scalp burned with a flaming crown. The only part of him that wasn’t ablaze was the artificial metal arm which he used to hold Jesse in place. The girl pulled away from him, keeping as much space as possible between herself and the fiery metahuman.

Panoptica and Death Ray stared at him angrily. But suddenly Zoom was in the lobby. Purple sparks traced over his giant frame. Jesse gave a little shriek as he stared at her and cocked his head to the side.

Deathstorm said, “Give me Frost, or your little bargaining chip goes up in flames.”

Tears rolled down Jesse’s face, mixing with the flammable fluid soaking her skin.

Zoom looked over at Panoptica and Death Ray. Ray handed Jesse’s necklace to him. “This is how the girl escaped the city. Her father must have modified it to protect her from the Human Shield.”

Zoom held the necklace up and examined it. The crystal in the pendant burned with a fierce blue light. He saw Jesse staring at it longingly. It represented her father’s love for her.

Zoom dropped the necklace to the ground and stepped on it. Jesse gasped, but the crystal was strong and didn’t shatter.

Deathstorm asked, “So, are we going to trade?”

Zoom looked at Deathstorm. “ **Here’s my counterproposal. I’ll bring Killer Frost here. Then I’ll cut off her limbs one by one until you surrender the girl. Then I’ll throw you and what’s left of Killer Frost in separate cells and keep you as my prisoners. That is my _trade_ , you foolish boy!**”

Zoom stomped his foot down on the necklace, and the crystal shattered beneath his boot. He cackled with a crackling laugh that echoed around the lobby.

But then he stopped laughing. He looked down and ice was blossoming out of the necklace and wrapping around his boot. It anchored him to the lobby floor, holding him in place. He pulled at his leg, unable to pull it loose. 

At the very top of the lobby, on the roof of the Bridge Boardroom, Harrison Wells lay on his stomach. He peered through the sniper scope on top of his Pulse Rifle and took careful aim. He didn’t have a chance earlier, since Zoom was always flitting about unexpectedly. But now he was held in place and was distracted.

Harrison pulled the trigger.

His aim was true, and his hand was steady. The Speed-dampening dart flew down at a steep angle, right at the Evil Speedster. Zoom was looking down, focused on his iced up foot. Everything was going according to plan.

But then Zoom grabbed the dart out of the air with his hand. Plucking it from its path with effortless speed.

The Speedster examined the dart with gentle curiosity. He could see tiny bits of metal moving within the dart. Like beads of mercury.

Zoom looked up at the Bridge. “ **Nice try, Harrison Wells. But you’ve broken our deal, and now there will be consequences.** ”

Zoom looked over at Jesse, who was still soaked in lighter fluid. A single touch from Zoom would spark her on fire. He vibrated his whole body violently, and the ice on his foot shattered away. Jesse shrieked in terror.

On top of the Bridge, Harrison pressed a button on the Pulse Rifle, and the dart in Zoom’s hand exploded.


	8. Deep Beneath

Harrison watched from the roof of the Bridge Boardroom as the dart exploded in Zoom’s hand. A grim smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

He heard a crash beneath him as Zoom zipped through carbyne glass which separated the lobby from the Carbyne Chimney over the Particle Accelerator. The Speedster should have been able to phase through the glass without shattering it, but the Speed-dampening Serum in the dart had slowed him down.

It would take Zoom more than 20 minutes to accelerate enough to explode the Accelerator. 

Harrison made sure Jesse and Ronnie had gotten out of the lobby. He had to trust that Ronnie would protect her.

The next part of the plan was for Harrison to escape the building. But he had to do something else first. Something which wasn’t part of the plan. He had to prove to Jesse that he was willing to risk his life to save someone else, even if they were barely worth saving.

Harrison ran to his personal office. He logged onto the computer system and began searching through the various live security feeds throughout the building. They even had security cameras beneath the Pipeline, in the underground storage and maintenance facilities.

He had spent weeks imprisoned under the Pipeline with Frost. He had observed, and he could narrow down the possible places she could be. But he didn’t have much time.

Then he found her. Killer Frost was huddled and shivering in her carbyne cube. Carbyne has few vulnerabilities, but there was one. All he had to do was remotely overload the generators in that room, and the heat would weaken the carbyne enough for Frost to escape. The heat would also kill any normal human, but she was far from normal.

Frost was an explosion waiting to happen, and she only needed a spark to set her off.

Harrison watched on the security camera as white hot embers overtook the room, then the feed went dead. He hoped she got out.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Ronnie and Jesse fled the lobby together. Jesse wasn’t worried about him accidentally catching her on fire. She had mixed up the fake lighter fluid herself. It smelled and looked flammable, but it was actually totally inert. She had never been in any real danger.

“Are you okay?” Ronnie asked her desperately.

“I’m fine,” Jesse assured him. She wiped the fake tears from her face. “Acting is one of my majors in college.”

Ronnie looked relieved. They found the right stairwell and ran down the stairs, deep into the bowels of the Labs. The Pipeline was filled with innocent civilians (for the most part), and they had to evacuate them before the building exploded.

Jesse found a computer terminal and worked on opening all the cells. Ronnie stood guard behind her. It didn’t take long for a flood of prisoners to start running out of the Pipeline. Jesse pointed them to the right stairwell to take them to the surface.

Ronnie desperately searched the faces of all the evacuating prisoners. Frost wasn’t with them. Zoom must still be keeping her in his lair. Not in the Pipeline.

“I have to look for Frost,” Ronnie said.

“We don’t have much time,” Jesse told him sadly. “The Pipeline will explode before you find her.” 

“I have to try,” Ronnie replied. He ran into the Pipeline.

And immediately flew back out and hit the opposite wall. Black Siren emerged from the Pipeline with a metal pipe slung over her shoulder. She dropped the pipe with a clang and sauntered towards Jesse.

“Jesse Wells,” she said with dark delight. “Do you want to know a fun fact? Your father killed my sister.”

Jesse looked around desperately, but she was alone and unarmed. “I’m sorry your sister died. But my father is trying to make amends. And more death won’t bring your sister back.”

“But it’ll feel good,” Black Siren explained. She wrapped her long fingers around Jesse’s throat and began to squeeze.

Jesse scratched at Siren’s face and hands, but Siren ignored her. She had experienced so much pain, and a little bit more didn’t faze her. Jesse’s vision was getting darker around the edges. She wanted to scream for help, but she couldn’t make a sound.

Suddenly, Siren grunted and looked down in confusion. Two sharp icicles were jutting from her abdomen.

Siren let go of Jesse’s neck, and Jesse took a deep desperate gasp of air. She fell to her knees and panted in relief.

“Thank you,” she managed to say to Killer Frost, who stood at the entrance to the Pipeline with two more icicles at the ready.

“I never liked that bitch, anyway,” Frost said with a shrug. She lifted her icicles, ready to deal the killing blow. Siren stared up at her defiantly, ready to meet her fate.

But Jesse said, “No, don’t kill her. There’s been enough death in this city.”

Frost shrugged again. She honestly didn’t care.

“My love,” Ronnie said from the other side of the room.

Frost ran over to him and straddled his lap. She was trying to act cool, but he was alive, and she was overjoyed, and tears were running down her cheeks. She fought hard to hide her delight.

She stroked a single finger down his new metal arm. “Hey, baby. I love the new upgrade,” she told him.

Ronnie loved how she accepted every part of him. They kissed each other violently. Ronnie clenched at her ass to pull her closer to him.

Siren looked at them with envy, like she wished she had someone who loved her as much as they loved each other. Jesse looked away, since the two metahumans had started to gyrate.

Jesse went over to the stairwell to evacuate. Ronnie and Frost reluctantly got up to follow her. Jesse looked back at Black Siren.

“You should come with us,” Jesse told her. “The Accelerator is about to explode. You’ll die if you stay here.”

Siren looked back at her pitifully. The icicles embedded in her gut were starting to melt, and her blood was mixed with the cold drops dripping on the ground around her. “There’s nothing for me up there. No one waiting for me.”

Ronnie pulled Jesse into the stairwell. They needed to leave. Jesse took one last look back, then she ran up the stairs towards the surface.

Black Siren crawled over to the Pipeline entrance and sat on the edge. Waiting for the explosion which would grant her a quick and painless death.


	9. Shatter Pattern

Police Chief Iris West-Allen stood on top of her police car, supervising the evacuation of STAR Labs. Her deputy, Floyd Lawton, was using a megaphone to assure all of Zoom’s metahuman minions that they wouldn’t be harmed if they surrendered into police custody. Barry and the rest of the police department were helping evacuate the civilians who had been imprisoned in the Pipeline

Jesse Wells had used her necklace to reverse engineer a smaller version of the Human Shield. Except humans could enter and exit it at will, while metahumans couldn’t pass through it. They just bounced off if they tried to go through it. The police department was using it to imprison the minions who had surrendered so far. Lady Mercury was restraining them before they were put in, so they wouldn’t attack each other once they were inside. Once reinforcements from outside the city arrived, the metahuman prisoners would be transferred to the Iron Heights metahuman wing.

Everything was going smoothly out here, but there was chaos in the lobby. There were random flashes of light and a few small explosions. Iris drew her firearm and jumped off the police car. She was going in.

“Lawton, you’re in charge,” she barked. Lawton looked at her with surprised eyes, like he didn’t feel he deserved the honor. 

Iris grabbed her husband Barry by the hand as she headed towards the building. They didn’t have to say anything. Iris just looked into his eyes, and that communicated everything she wanted to say. Barry squeezed her hand once, and they let go.

Iris snuck into the lobby through a side door, and immediately tucked into a roll and somersaulted behind a pillar. High above the lobby, a glass boardroom was cut in half by a laser blast.

Iris peeked around her pillar and saw Panoptica using her laser vision to attack fleeing metahumans. On the other side of the lobby, Death Ray was throwing miniature grenades at the minions. Iris was confused. Weren’t they allies?

“Cowards!” Panoptica screeched. “Traitors! As soon as the going gets tough, you’re jumping ship!”

Iris realized Panoptica was mad at them for trying to surrender.

Iris moved to the next pillar. Trying to get close enough for a clean shot. She was about to move again, when the pillar burst into flames right above her head. Iris dove back the other way, just as the entire pillar was destroyed by the next laser blast.

“Who’s hiding behind that pillar?” Panoptica taunted with a crazed voice. “I think I saw a police uniform!”

Iris decided to turn and fight. She jumped out and tried to fire her revolver at Panoptica, but the metahuman was too fast. Iris’s hands burned as her revolver was blasted from her hands. She tried to duck behind her pillar again, but Panoptica blasted it to smithereens. Iris ran the other way, but Panoptica blasted the floor right in front of her. There was nowhere to run. Iris turned to face her fate. 

Panoptica grinned at her, savoring the moment. “Time to burn you even blacker!”

A fierce light bloomed in Panoptica’s eyes, and she aimed the blast directly at the police captain. But the next thing Panoptica knew, she was lying on her back, screeching in pain. Everything was darkness and pain.

Iris blinked in shock as well. Then she realized there was a mirrored sheet of ice which had formed in front of her. It had reflected Panoptica’s blast back at her. Iris turned to see Killer Frost standing right beside her.

“Guess I’m not as cold as you thought,” Frost said nonchalantly. Then she wandered out of the lobby with Ronnie Raymond by her side.

A group of metahuman minions were grabbing the chance to escape the lobby, since Panoptica was down. She rolled around in pain, but she could hear the footfalls as they tried to run. She turned her blind eyes in their direction and formed a final laser blast to kill them all. 

Iris saw what was about to happen and realized she had no choice. She dove for her weapon and rolled up in a crouch. Then she shot Panoptica dead.

The gunshot echoed in the huge lobby. Iris took a deep breath. Panoptica lay lifeless on the ground. The final minions escaped out into the parking lot. 

The only other person in the lobby was Death Ray. He looked over at Panoptica in shock. Then he looked up at Iris, who aimed her revolver at him.

“Don’t move,” she begged him. She didn’t want to kill two people in one day.

Death Ray looked down at Pandorica. “She was my world. She was the only thing worth fighting for,” he said with cold sorrow.

“Then don’t fight,” Iris suggested desperately.

She was relieved when Death Ray raised his hands and surrendered. Iris grabbed her cuffs and started to arrest him. She didn’t notice the miniature grenades in his hands until too late.

But right before they exploded, someone jumped between Iris and Death Ray. The grenades exploded, and Iris was thrown back.

She was dazed, and there was a ringing in her ears. She carefully pushed herself up to a seated position. Death Ray lay dead on the other side of the lobby. Iris looked down and found Barry West-Allen laying in her lap, covered in blood.

She had never seen him so injured before. He was a metahuman with super-healing, but every superpower had its limits. 

Iris clutched at his bloody hands, willing him to heal himself. His eyes were staring up at the ceiling without moving. Iris leaned down to kiss him. Like Sleeping Beauty, being woken from her sleep by her love. Except he didn’t wake up. 

Iris scooped him up. She had to believe he was alive, which meant they had to evacuate the building. She stood up with Barry in her arms. He was tall, but she was strong. She could carry him.

She trudged across the decimated lobby and pushed out into the parking lot. She hugged him tightly to her chest.

She _had_ to believe he was alive.


	10. If the sky comes falling down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from [Hey Brother](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Cp6mKbRTQY) by Avicii.

The Lab was collapsing. Random bits of the ceiling were burning and falling down to the lobby far below. The Accelerator would explode any minute now. He had to escape.

Harrison ran along the top floor, heading to the Bridge Boardroom, which he had to cross to escape. He burst into the boardroom and could see the doors on the other side. There was just one problem.

There was no floor. 

A great gaping gash had been cut through the middle of the room. Some sort of laser blast had torn it apart, and the carbyne glass beneath it was cracked. Harrison looked around desperately for another route. He knew the Labs like the back of his hand.

But there was nothing. Every route was blocked by burning debris or collapses. He was trapped.

He had always been able to rely on his mind to come up with solutions in the past, but this time, there was nothing. He had nothing, and he had no one, and he would die alone. 

“I had a feeling you’d run off, and try to fix something by yourself,” said a voice. 

Harrison looked up to see Lady Mercury standing on the other side of the Bridge.

“You may be a genius, but there’s one thing you need to learn, Dr Wells: you’re not alone,” she told him warmly.

Then she reached out her hands and formed a path of liquid metal which went across the vast gap between them. It was a bridge across the void. 

It looked thinner than paper, but Harrison trusted her. He looked across at her and took a step forward.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Minutes later, Harrison and Lady Mercury stood in the parking lot and watched as the Particle Accelerator exploded. The explosion was funneled upwards for the most part by the Carbyne Chimney. But the chimney had been cracked, so the explosion also destroyed most of STAR Labs.

They were safe out in the parking lot. The multi-story lobby had been designed as a back-up, in case the Carbyne Chimney failed. It contained the explosion.

So Harrison stood and watched as his life’s work was destroyed.

Then Jesse came up and stood beside him and hugged him. He remembered that there was a part of his life’s work which was still around. _She_ was his proudest achievement.

He hugged her tightly. She smelled like lighter fluid and hope.

The Shield Generator had been on the roof of STAR Labs, so it was also destroyed. They all looked up at the sky and watched as the Human Shield melted away like a shimmering curtain.

The blue tint of the Shield was gone, and the city was once again bathed in the golden light of the unshielded sun.


	11. Love will not betray you, dismay or enslave you. It will set you free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from [Sigh No More](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujv3c0TqLRk) by Mumford & Sons.

_Six months later..._

Iris kissed Barry deeply. His hands were cuffed with her police issue handcuffs, and she had them pinned above his head. His eyes were blindfolded with her scarf, and he had a brand-new collar around his neck. Iris ran her hands over his naked body. He quivered under her touch, but she could tell it was with excitement, not fear. 

He trusted her. 

She traced the scars which now covered his chest. He never used to get scars. He would get injured and heal with no marks left behind. But Death Ray’s grenades were nasty little things. Barry had been in the hospital for over a week.

But eventually, Barry came home, and Iris had him again. She straddled his midsection and knelt down over him. Then she grabbed his cuffed hands and pulled them towards her. Barry was so relaxed in her bonds. He trusted her with his life.

Iris kissed the tips of his fingers, then guided his hands down her naked chest. He gentle cupped her swollen breasts. Then she pulled his hands down lower and let him press his palms against her pregnant belly.

He hadn’t been at their latest OB-GYN visit, so she got to tell him the latest news herself.

“Twins,” she whispered.

A smile practically split Barry’s face in half.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

“Arms out,” the prison guard ordered.

Ronnie obediently put his arms out and submitted to the pat down. He winked at the lady guard who was supervising. She suppressed a smile. He had been coming here for weeks, and they were getting used to him. 

They skipped the full body, just like the last time. Then they opened the door to the conjugal visit room. Frost sat on the edge of the bed, somehow making a prison jumpsuit look sexy.

True to her word, Iris West-Allen had granted them both a full pardon for all past crimes. Frankly, it was a relief to both of them to be free of Zoom and of what serving him had turned them into.

But criminal habits are hard to break. Frost had gotten nabbed for a jewel heist just a month after the downfall of Zoom.

A normal life was never an option for Ronnie and Frost. They liked their life of petty crime. 

Frost ran to him and jumped up to wrap her legs around him. Ronnie stepped over to dump her on the bed, as he heard the door close behind them. They were alone.

Ronnie started to undress. “I brought a present for you.”

Frost grinned mischievously and looked down at the bulge in his pants. Ronnie pulled down his fly and reached in to pull out a keycard.

“I’ll be waiting down by the river in a stolen sportscar tomorrow night,” he whispered.

She tucked the keycard into the lining of her jumpsuit, then stripped naked.

“Thanks, baby,” Frost told him. “But I don’t think I can wait that long.”

Ronnie grinned in delight as she began to strip his clothes off him.

◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆ḅᛒ◆

Harrison scratched at the security anklet.

He had been charged as an accomplice to numerous homicides, but the court took into account his daughter being held hostage and how he helped overthrow Zoom. They sentenced him to a few years of house arrest, and forbade him from reopening STAR Labs. It went against his nature, but he was adjusting to his new life and beginning to enjoy it.

Jesse was back at college, but she visited on weekends. He was so proud of her. A tall stack of drafts from her multiple theses were on his coffee table, awaiting his edits. 

Lady Mercury came into his study. She was wearing a silk bathrobe with nothing under it. She draped a hand across his shoulder and kissed him on the forehead.

“I’m going to the store soon,” she said. “Need anything?”

“I don’t need anything at all,” Harrison said quietly.

And so it was that Harrison Wells lost his job, lost his lab, lost his life’s work, and lost his freedom. And yet, he found his life.

It was his downfall but also his redemption.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Want similar stories?  
> [What to read next ](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17252378/chapters/40959338?show_comments=true#comment_204216959)
> 
> In the comments, you will also find:  
> [Author’s notes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17252378/chapters/40959338?show_comments=true#comment_204217460) and [Author’s questions](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17252378/chapters/40959338?show_comments=true#comment_204217145).


End file.
